Fundraising Fox

Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome)

Accelerator

Christchurch · Pre-Seed–Seed · 23 people tracked

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Investment thesis

Ministry of Awesome supports founders at every stage of their journey with staged programmes. Startup Aotearoa connects idea-stage founders with startup coaches. Pre-Founder Catalyst focuses on customer-informed product development with a dedicated entrepreneur to prepare for go-to-market. Founder Catalyst pairs founders showing early customer traction and emerging product-market fit with a seasoned entrepreneur acting as an honorary co-founder to build personal capabilities, scale the company, expand overseas, and raise private capital. All programmes are open to founders across New Zealand.

Invests inSector AgnosticNew Zealand

Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.

Stage
Pre-Seed–Seed
HQ
Christchurch, NZ
Founded
2012
Tracked investments
14

Team · 23 people

from the firm's website
Graham Scown· Chief Executive Officerin

CEO of Ministry of Awesome, leading its mission to build a collaborative startup ecosystem across Aotearoa. An innovation leader experienced in strategy, cross-functional programme design, and connecting government, universities, startups, and industry.

Bekah Tregonning· Creative Marketing Specialist

Creative marketing specialist working across design, brand, events, and marketing to represent and share the organization's stories and values.

Ben Erskine· Chief Marketing Officer

CMO overseeing marketing, brand management, digital marketing, and social media, and building community around Te Ōhaka.

Bridget Unsworth· Trustee

Startup ecosystem specialist with 15 years supporting founders; former Investment Director at NZGCP and Executive Director of the Angel Association.

Brough Johnson· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Co-founder of Narrative Muse, an ethical audience intelligence platform, leading product vision and commercial growth; previously worked in film and TV including on the Emmy-winning series Rūrangi.

Dale Stephens· Trustee + Chair

Board chair with over 20 years in senior business leadership to CEO level and senior roles at government agencies including the Ministry for Māori Development and Ministry for Primary Industries.

Dan Khan· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Early-stage founder advisor with 25+ years building and scaling tech companies, including a European social network exit. Co-founder of a leading NZ startup accelerator, supporting founders on product-market fit and go-to-market.

Dianne Jones· Startup Coach

Co-founder of Myovolt, focused on commercialising R&D, with a 25-year track record as an inventor and company founder delivering innovations to international markets.

Georgia Lee· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Former health tech founder with experience across research, product development, commercialisation, investor relations, and financial management, now supporting founders bringing high-impact solutions to market.

Guy Horrocks· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Venture-backed serial entrepreneur in NZ and NYC and a go-to-market specialist advising companies including Halter, Tracksuit, and Sence.

James Burnes· Trustee

Product development consultant with 20 years in product marketing and entrepreneurship; co-founder and former CEO of Startup Queenstown Lakes.

Janine Grainger· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Fintech founder and entrepreneur with a background in strategy, finance, and economics, recognized as a University of Auckland Top 40 Under 40 and 2023 IBM Hi-Tech Awards Inspiring Individual.

Jenni Callaghan· Trustee

Chartered Accountant and Associate Director at EY specialising in financial, accounting, and taxation needs of privately owned businesses; helped build the EY–MOA partnership.

Levi Fawcett· Trustee

Founder and CEO of Partly and a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree who previously built four companies and led the guidance and simulation team at Rocket Lab.

Mahesh Muralidhar· Trustee

Early employee and first Head of People at Canva, and former operational leader at Airtasker; an investor and mentor to startups.

Marian Johnson· Electrify Chairwoman

Leads the Electrify initiative supporting women and non-binary founders in New Zealand, and is a former Chief Executive of Ministry of Awesome. She previously spent 15 years in marketing and growth strategy for tech startups in NZ and with Universal Studios and Discovery Networks in the US and Europe.

Marie-Claire Andrews· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Business development, marketing, and strategic leader and serial entrepreneur with a background in SaaS, agritech, and community ventures, supporting growth and commercial strategy for startups.

Sam Blackman· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Entrepreneur, technologist, and educator; co-founder and former CTO of Y Combinator-backed Nuvocargo, with prior machine learning and product/engineering leadership roles.

Sam Park· Startup Coach

Business strategist with expertise in sales strategy, food & beverage, and healthtech, helping others develop solutions for profitable, sustainable growth.

Shaun Edlin· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Former CEO of Dotterel Technologies, which he scaled from startup to international deployments; now advises founders on go-to-market, fundraising, sales, and product development.

Tim Pointer· Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Co-founder and CEO of Reason and founder of RescueMetrics; an investor and advisor helping founders with product-market fit and go-to-market strategy.

Tori Ball· Head of Operations

Head of Operations keeping the organization running smoothly, with experience across corporate, manufacturing, hospitality, and retail industries.

Zach Warder Gabaldon· Chief Innovation Officer

CIO responsible for developing and managing Ministry of Awesome's startup and innovation products, drawing on over two decades in Silicon Valley's entrepreneurship and innovation scene.

Investments · 14 tracked

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Frequently asked questions

What stage does Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome) invest at?
Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome) invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed stages.
What sectors does Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome) focus on?
Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome) focuses on Sector Agnostic.
Where is Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome) located?
Founder Catalyst (Ministry of Awesome) is headquartered in Christchurch, NZ.

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